Chapter 166: Startled Awake
Chen Mo took out his phone and saw a message asking him to call back when he had a moment.
Liu Xin had considered that Chen Mo might go to bed early, since he had a cold.
As he and Su Yuqing were walking home, Chen Mo called Liu Xin back.
"Officer Liu, is there something else you needed?" Chen Mo asked, thinking there might be a problem with the surveillance footage. He felt a little nervous.
"Oh, here’s the thing. A woman just came to our station saying someone acted heroically and saved her son. I pulled the surveillance footage, and it looks like the rescuer was you."
Chen Mo could hear a hint of appreciative laughter in Liu Xin’s voice.
He hadn’t expected it to be about that. Chen Mo relaxed and said, "If you’re talking about what happened last Saturday night, then yes, that was me."
"Then it’s settled. I just wanted to confirm first. It’d be a hassle if we had a mix-up later," Liu Xin replied with a laugh.
"Later?"
"Yep. That’s all. Your cold isn’t better yet, so get some rest. I won’t bother you any longer." Liu Xin said with a laugh before hanging up.
Putting his phone away, Chen Mo guessed from what Liu Xin had said that they were planning to give him an award at some point.
"Did Officer Liu need something from you?" Su Yuqing asked with concern.
"It was about the rescue last Saturday night. The family found us," Chen Mo said with a smile.
"Wow, they’re really grateful. I can’t believe they managed to find you all the way over here," Su Yuqing said, a little surprised.
"Well, the mother mentioned her son had jumped into the river to save someone else. That already showed their family has high moral standards, so it’s not surprising they’d go this far.
It just proves we didn’t save the wrong person. This cold wasn’t for nothing, COUGH COUGH," Chen Mo said with a smile.
"It’s just been so hard on you," Su Yuqing said, her heart aching as she gently patted Chen Mo’s back.
"This is nothing. Back when I was a..." Getting carried away, Chen Mo almost started talking about his time as a criminal investigator.
The hardships of being a front-line criminal investigator on the move were indeed far greater than his current discomfort.
Sometimes, when a case reached a critical point, you had to push through even if you were sick.
Recalling those hardships, Chen Mo felt a mix of pain and joy.
After all, the exhilarating rush of dopamine that came from giving your all to catch a criminal was truly addictive.
"Back when you were a what?" Su Yuqing looked at Chen Mo curiously.
"When I was a volunteer. I helped people a lot," Chen Mo said with a smile.
He had actually been a volunteer before, so it wasn’t technically a lie.
Hearing how kind-hearted Chen Mo was, Su Yuqing’s gaze filled with even more admiration for him.
「Meanwhile, at the police station...」
Liu Xin looked at the file he had pulled up on Chen Mo and turned to a fellow officer. "The student who came in to report the fugitive... he’s from the same school, right?"
"That’s right. I heard they caught the guy. The information he provided was completely accurate. Since he’s a student, the higher-ups are planning a public award ceremony for him at his school. Of course, the specific details will be handled discreetly.
As for the reward money, that will be given to him privately," the officer next to him said with a smile.
"This school is really full of talent. In that case, let’s kill two birds with one stone and present both of their awards at the same time."
"Then let’s do it next Monday. There’s a flag-raising ceremony on Mondays, so everyone will be there. We can give them their awards then. It’ll also set a good example for all the students."
"That could work. We’ve already expedited the award process since they’re students, but it’ll still take a few days for the reward money to be processed. If we do it next Monday, we can give the student his money right after the ceremony."
"Sounds good. Let’s schedule it for next Monday."
After they finished talking, Liu Xin watched the surveillance footage again.
From Chen Mo’s posture and bearing, he could always sense a kind of well-trained discipline.
It really wasn’t the kind of demeanor you’d expect a high school student to have.
Back on the street, Chen Mo and Su Yuqing were walking home. The night grew deeper, and the number of pedestrians on the road dwindled.
This feeling of a late-night stroll truly had a unique atmosphere.
They walked side-by-side, neither saying much, but the day’s events had brought their hearts a step closer.
Su Yuqing was afraid of losing Chen Mo, and he felt the same way.
Only by growing closer could the two of them find a sense of security that was uniquely theirs.
The long, half-hour walk home seemed to pass in the blink of an eye, and before they knew it, they were at their front door.
Back inside, looking at everything in the apartment, Su Yuqing felt as if she had recovered something she had lost.
The moment her mother had shown up, she had been terrified that she would be dragged away and never be able to come back here again.
Now, being home again, she was instantly filled with a sense of security.
Chen Mo glanced at the time. It was already after 10:00 PM; time for bed.
Chen Mo said to Su Yuqing, "I have to go to school tomorrow. If I oversleep, make sure you wake me up."
"But your cold isn’t better yet. Why don’t you rest for one more day?" Su Yuqing said, concerned.
"It’s fine, I’m already much better. Besides, the doctor said it’s not contagious. At worst, I’ll have a slight cough tomorrow. I’ll just wear a mask. As long as the fever doesn’t come back, it’s basically no big deal," Chen Mo replied with a smile.
"Alright then. Get a good night’s rest tonight."
As she spoke, Su Yuqing went into the kitchen and started warming some milk for bedtime.
Chen Mo was always the one who brought it to her before.
Now that Chen Mo was sick, it was her turn to take care of him.
After bringing a small cup of warm milk to Chen Mo, Su Yuqing returned to her own room, washed up, and lay down on her bed.
Only when she was lying in this little bed again did she finally feel like she was truly home.
It was a feeling of belonging.
In this little bed, where she had only slept for a week, she felt a sense of peace she hadn’t experienced in over a decade.
After lying down, Su Yuqing, who had been running around nonstop for the past two days, quickly fell into an exhausted sleep.
「3:00 AM.」
"Chen Mo!"
Su Yuqing suddenly jolted awake from her sleep.
She had dreamt that she came home to find Chen Mo lying in a pool of his own blood.
In that moment, she felt as if she heard the sound of shattering glass. Her consciousness fractured, the world started to spin, and then she woke with a start.
Right now, she was in a daze.
She clutched her head with both hands, her face a mask of pain and panic.
"Chen Mo..." She suddenly looked up at her door. Half-asleep and half-awake, she had no idea if Chen Mo was still okay.
Overcome with a terrible fear and dread of losing Chen Mo, she leaped out of bed, threw open her door, and rushed to the front of his bedroom.